James Graham won his first riding title by capturing leading honors at the Arlington Park meet, which wrapped up on Sunday. Graham, a Dublin native, entered the final day up by a win on his two closest pursuers, Jozbim Santana and Junior Alvarado. Santana tightened things up when he won the first race. But Graham knocked out wins in the third (Garburetor, $7.00), seventh (Fan Tan Man, $7.20) and eighth (Cavalero, $10.60) races to pull away.
Graham finished the meet with 82 wins (three more than both Alvarado and Santana) and $1,913,805 in purse earnings, which also topped the jockey colony at Arlington. Graham was second in the standings at the suburban Chicago oval in 2009 and third last year.
Dr. Pat Sheehy and Carl O'Callaghan won consecutive races on Sunday's Fairplex card in Pomona, Calif. Thinking of Girls rallied under Martin Pedroza, the king of Pomona, to win the seventh race by one-half lengths and pay $5.60 to win. Then, Ms. Pianist broke her maiden in the eighth race, with Pedroza again in the irons. She paid $5.40 as the favorite. This was the third career start for Ms. Pianist; Thinking of Girls, now 2-for-5, was claimed out of her race for $10,000 by Denise Breuer. Sheehy is a Cork-born and raised oncologist, now based in Newport Beach, Calif.
Mike Doyle got a third win in a row from Scott Abbott's Dance to the Moon, winner of Woodbine's third race on Thursday. The 4-year-old homebred filly didn't get the early lead like she usually does, but she stayed close and assumed command under regular partner Slade Callaghan at the eighth pole and reached the wire in front by a length in this third-level allowance sprint at seven furlongs. The winner, which has also won four of her last five races, paid $35.30 to win.
The public made J.M. Stritzl Stable's Crowns Dynasty the 1-2 choice in Woodbine's first race on Friday and the Dan O'Callaghan maiden aired by seven lengths under Eurico Da Silva. The 2-year-old colt paid $3.00 to win.
John Good is a perfect 2-for-2 at the Hoosier Park meet after saddling Brereton Jones' Sympathy Act to a come-from-behind victory in her racing debut. The Co. Kildare native boosted Sal Gonzalez, Jr. into the saddle and greeted him and the 3-year-old homebred filly after they hit the wire in front by one and one-half lengths. She paid $14.00 in winning this maiden claiming sprint.
Speaking of 2-for-2, the same applies to Team Buds Racing's More Than Noble since the 3-year-old colt has taken up residence in Jim Corrigan's shedrow. He made what the chart footnotes described as "an explosive four wide" move to reach contention in Friday's seventh race at Mountaineer and go on to tough out the win by a length in a drive under Deshawn Parker. More Than Noble had been winless in six starts before Corrigan got hold of him. Friday's race was a 2-turn, first-tier allowance. More Than Noble returned $4.20 to win.
This hasn't been the best of seasons for Derek Ryan. He got his seventh win of the Monmouth Park meet on Saturday via the hooves of Ishikawa, which is now responsible for three of those victories. Ishikawa is an honest laborer when pitted at the appropriate level, in his case nickel claimers. The 3-year-old gelding is basically a need-the-lead type of runner and he was able to obtain a comfortable early advantage in Saturday's third race on the Jersey shore. He sailed home clear by four lengths under Eddie Jurado, his favorite rider and returned $14.40 to win.
Another that makes the most of life among the lower rungs of the claiming ladder is Peter Hand's Attack Jack, under the care of Cathal Lynch. The 7-year-old gelding was an easy 7-length winner under Angel Arroyo in the third race at Parx on Sunday, racing seven furlongs against $5,000 claiming stock. Attack Jack paid $3.60 and went unclaimed in capturing his third win from six starts this year. Presumably, he has well-known physical issues, judging by the lack of interest in him at the claim box.
